Chances are you’ve heard of TikTok, a social media video-sharing platform owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company founded in 2012. By the end of 2019, TikTok had become one of the most downloaded apps in the world. As it’s popularity grew so did concerns about its security.
TikTok Fined by Federal Trade Commission
In February 2019, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) fined TikTok $5.7 million for illegally capturing information from children under 13 years of age in the United States of America.
“The operators of Musical.ly — now known as TikTok — knew many children were using the app but they still failed to seek parental consent before collecting names, email addresses, and other personal information from users under the age of 13,” said FTC Chairman Joe Simons.
The Washington Post
Potential TikTok Security Vulnerabilities
In January 2020, Check Point Research published an article detailing several concerning TikTok vulnerabilities their teams were able to exploit.
According to Check Point Research, attackers may be able to:
- Get a hold of accounts and manipulate their content
- Delete videos
- Upload unauthorized videos
- Make private “hidden” videos public
- Reveal personal information saved on the account such as private email addresses
Potential Microsoft Acquisition
In July 2020, President Trump began making statements about banning TikTok in the United States on the grounds that the app is a national security threat. This article from The Verge does a great job of explaining how a legal case could be made and ultimately enforced.
Just this month, President Trump threatened to use his presidential powers to ban the app as soon as September if it’s not acquired by an American-based company. Enter Microsoft, which has started a 45-day process to acquire TikTok and bring the company’s code from China to the United States within a year.
Facebook Launches Reels
Today, August 5, 2020, Facebook-owned Instagram has launched a TikTok rival, Instagram Reels. Facebook has a history of integrating popular features from its competitors, and this announcement seems to be the latest attempt at remaining relevant.
In Conclusion
Time will tell if Microsoft buys TikTok in it’s entirety, just the North American market, or at all. And even if the code does move from China to the United States, will Microsoft be able to plug up the potential security breeches? With Facebook bringing Instagram Reels into the mix, perhaps President Trump will ban the app after all.
In the mean time, we remain steadfast in our belief that TikTok users should proceed with caution when using the app.
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